← Steels
Stainless steel
VG-10
The Japanese standard. Takes a very keen edge quickly; loses it sooner than the powder steels.
- Typical hardness
- 59-61 HRC
- Edge retention
- 2/5
- Toughness
- 3/5
- Corrosion resistance
- 4/5
- Ease of sharpening
- 4/5
1-5 is a relative ranking drawn from published composition and hardness, not a lab measurement. Higher is better on every axis, and no steel is a 5 across the board — edge retention and toughness pull against each other.
